Meet the Maker – PedalSketch

PedalSketch was borne of the vision that anyone, no matter their age or ability, can be an artist. We decided to use the most commonplace, familiar object we could think of, a bicycle, and allow people to create art just by cycling. The brakes, speed, and steering are all measured by an arduino which is then interpreted by our art program which we made in Processing. The user chooses a cell on the grid and then has about a minute to cycle and create art with whatever of the 5 or so styles has been randomed. The user is free of all decisions and need only focus on creating, at the end of which their art is then added to the grid for others to see.

We wanted it to be a collaborative process and one that exists past the project timeline so we have the program immediately upload the artwork people create onto our website, www.pedalsketch.com/gallery, so that people can check it out and show their friends or family. Ultimately though we hope people will enjoy the experience and rekindle their interest in art, and show them that it’s never too late.

We hope to move on to greater things with the idea, incorporating more objects and perhaps organising some community art events where people can come and create communal art by interacting with various everyday objects.